ABC News Claims Dems Racist For Barring Burris

Eric Boehlert highlights this astoundingly daffy statement from ABC News' David Wright:

"Not since Mr. Smith came to Washington, in that old Frank Capra film, has an idealistic senator appointed by a corrupt party boss been so unwelcome at the Capitol. But at least Mr. Smith got his seat," David Wright reported on ABC's "Good Morning America" Tuesday. "But it's also distinctly possible the scene will look more like 'Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?' The senators may seem out of touch, if this overwhelmingly white group refuses to admit the one and only black man seeking to join their exclusive club."

I think this analogy is out of touch. In the first place, it cannot be credibly argued that the Senate's exclusivity -- racial or otherwise -- is foundational to their decision to bar the appointment of Roland Burris. It was made very clear in advance that the Senate would refuse to seat even the most Caucasian of potential Rod Blagojevich appointees to the Senate. The fact that Burris happens to be "a black man seeking to join" the Senate is an irrelevant and coincidental detail.

I'd point out again that mere weeks ago, when the media was kvetching about the Obama transition team delaying their report on who had contacted Blagojevich and when, the pounding message coming out of the newshole was that Blago was corrupt to the core, and that any appointment made would bring taint to the door of the Senate. Now, the message has shifted: Blago is just doing his duty! What else could the man do? It's not Burris fault! And, indeed, Burris has repeatedly asked that his personal considerations be separated from Blagojevich's scandals. I think that the Senate could more credibly be separated from these shallow race-card concerns. Anyway, it's clearly the press that wants to position themselves on the "right" side of a racial issue that they've midwifed into reality, all of which neatly serves the ends of an Illinois Governor that everyone agreed was tainted beyond repair a fortnight ago.

Beyond that, I just think that the allusion to Guess Who's Coming To Dinner is unusually seedy. Clearly, the only impediment to Roland Burris marrying Katharine Houghton is her current husband, Ken Jenkins.

Comments

[trinity29]

oh please this has nothing to do with race. anyone trying to say this is actually falling into the propaganda. what happened was that Blagoclusterphuck tainted the whole party and no one can just accept his nomination in the senate without the shadow of the taint. also, they need someone who can win elections going forward and burris has lost more than he has won. blagobighair did this to be a thorn on the dems sides and it is working. dems already said that they wont seat blago's appointment and now to turn around and seat this dude would hurt them politically. they are letting this play out a bit. even if they appoint burris they have the right to oust him. and none of it has to do with race but hard cold cut throat politics.

[JZ735]

Tainted? That's an allegation...like Linkins, you seem to have a problem with the law: until Blago is convicted, he is not guilty of any crime...therefore his choice is legitimate.

[Pharos]

Correct he is not guilty. That is not the point. If he publicly stated he had accepted money for the appointment would anyone be supporting his legal right? The Senate has a legal duty to judge.

[jazzdrummerb]

Absolutely silly. I'm black and in no way do I see this as racism. It's power politics, pure and simple. Nothing more, nothing less. Calling it racism is ridiculous. Every incident that affects a black person in a negative way is not de-facto racism. This just makes the real racism harder to root out.
Silly.

[Nonamnesiac]

So the Senate Democrats who have voted for things like the Patriot Acts, FISA, the Military Commissions Act and the Protect America Act and who have joined in a standing ovation to a convicted felon and thief (Ted Stevens) have decided to revert back to their roots as the Party of the Hooded Knights of the Ku Klux Klan and deny a qualified, legally appointed Black membership in the once again All-White U.S. Senate. The Senate Dems did this supposedly because some two-bit, low-life prosecutor conducted an unnecessary, dramatic, reprehensible midnight arrest of a sitting governor who was not a flight risk without having sufficient evidence to submit to a Chicago Grand Jury to get an indictment of that governor. As Obama appears to have supported blocking Burris and even incited it, there will evidently be at least four more years in which the Rule of Law, the Constitution and the presumption of innocence will be subservient to immediate, petty, political considerations -- a rerun of the past 8 years with only who benefits politically changing.

Those saying it's not racist for an all White US Senate to reject a legally appointed, highly qualified Black remind me of how the Klan draped their racism in patriotism and other positive values. It's racism pure and simple to keep him out.

[Pharos]

They announced in advanced that they would accept no one appointed by the Gov. period. How is it now racism when they follow through on their promise? Burris has shown great disrespect for Obama. Why do so many Obama supporters forget that? Obama asked Burris not to accept. Surly no one is suggesting Obama is racist so what gives?

[Nonamnesiac]

Obama has the right to ask. Under the Presumption of Innocence, the Rule of Law and the Constitution Blago and Burris both have the right to refuse Obama. And under the Rule of Law, the Constitution and the Presumption of Innocence, Burris should be seated. Just because Obama rings the bell doesn't mean that his supporters must act like Pavlov's dogs and do what he wants reflexively. Obama is continuing the Bush practice of using friviolous legal theories to block the Rule of Law, the Constitution and Presumption of Innocence similar to how Gonzales and John Yoo used frivolous legal theories to justify war crimes and a reign of criminality.

All Obama supporters should unite in defense of the Presumption of Innocence, the Constitution and the Rule of Law and support Burris's being seated and allow the process to deal with Blago. So far all that's happened is he was arrested in a reprehensible midnight raid, without being a flight risk, by a prosecutor who doesn't have the evidence to indict him. He is innocent, and still the elected governor.

Many Dems in this Senate gave convicted felon Ted Stevens a standing ovation, but they refuse to admit a highly qualified, legally appointed Black to that all White body? Give me a break.

[TribunusPlebis]

No federal office should be occupied by someone appointed by an executive who is accused by a federal authority of extorting bribes from prospective occupants of the office. No trait, opinion or action of Roland Burris is relevant, because the Senate has long been recognized as the sole aribiter of its integrity as an institution. The governor who made the appointment was only a few weeks ago arrested by the FBI because a federal prosecutor believed he had sufficient evidence to indict him for corruption, and the timing of the arrest was dictated by the prosecutor's fear that the governor could imminently make a Senate appointment after having solicited a bribe to do so. The Illinois political process has not had sufficient time to impeach the governor and remove him from office, but that is predicted to occur in a few weeks. Defiantly, the disgraced governor has gone ahead and made an appointment. It is impossible to know whether or not Blagojevich obtained any consideration from Burris for appointing him, but if the Illinois attorney general and secretary of state don't trust this appointment, why should the U.S. Senate? The Senate has every right to defend the integrity of its membership from any appointment made by this governor.

[HyperInfluential]

More and more, the Blagojevich/Burris story is beginning to make me think our world may actually be controlled by Lizard People who are performing cultural experiments on us. It's too bizarre to be real.

Can we really be arguing about this? Are there really people who honestly believe that being caught trying to commit a crime shouldn't bar someone from going ahead and committing that crime while they're out on bail? And that everyone else should refrain from using their legal means to stop it, because only the criminal's legal rights should be enforced, not the rights of the people our system puts in place to stop such criminals, like the Secretary of State, who has an obligation not to sign off on any appointment that has the appearance of impropriety?

It's crazy talk!

[StillAmused]

Regent Law School?

Summer remedial classes, right?

Ever graduate, dullard?

[kevinw]

The governor was tainted. All of the Senators were sworn in by DICK Cheney. (I can never tell if that is a nickname or his first name). There is no man in America, except possibly Madeoff, that is more tainted than George Bush's evil uncle Cheney. Does that mean that the wearing in should not count. Oh wait, DICK has never been indicted or impeached. Gee now that that you think about, neither has Blogojevich. A prosecutor is thinking of indicting him, that could actually be any of us. The Illinois house is thinking about impeaching him. I used to live in Chicago, I am sure that there is a very long list of things they were thinking of doing when I lived there that they still have not gotten to. So what is the problem with Burris then. Reid asked Blogo not to appoint anyone until he was impeached or imprisoned. Blogo picked a black candidate that has never had any charges of impropriety attached to him. He actually is the first black candidate to be elected to statewide office in Illinois. Was there a nefarious reason that Blago picked him? YES!!!!!!! He picked a candidate that was above reproach and black so that Reid and his all white Senate would have to either accept him or make a circus out of the event of barring him from the Senate. He should have just pretended this was the FISA legislation and let it go through.

[Pharos]

No he picked a candidate that has such a huge ego he would accept when others would not and then embarrass the new Democratic majority and the new President.

[lynjs]

This isn't racial. It is thumbing one's nose at an establishment because the law says one can. Blago is smart. He chose Burris just to cause this ruckus and idiots are falling for it.

As an African American, it is disgusting that Blago would turn this into a circus and that Burris would let him use him in this manner. This shows that the lust of power outweighs decency anytime.

[hollace]

It cracks me up to think the only reson the seat is available is because Ill. sent Barak Obama to the Whitehouse

[dessertsfirst]

I guess I can see it both ways.... anybody that Blago would nominate would be unacceptable because he is about to be, and should have already been impeached. On the other hand, as was pointed out by a Chicagoan journalist, there are other younger people who are very qualified to be appointed to the position and who would do a good job for the people of Illinois. On the other hand, there is no reason why anybody who is qualified and who Blago appoints should NOT be seated because he hasn't been impeached, nor arrested and he is still governor who has the legal right to make an appointment to the vacated senate seat. Perhaps Burris is simply trying to 'seize the moment'? A special election to let the people of Illinois decide who they want to represent them in the senate, might be the ideal way to go.

[GravitonX]

Dems made it about race as soon as they started talking about not seating the only Black Senator, the comparative reference to Blacks sitting at the back of the bus notwithstanding. Those Dems doing the blocking are absolutely clueless as to the cultural shock waves that were released.

This was as dumb as calling a Black person the N-word then claiming "it's not about race."

[JZ735]

The Dems are playing with fire here.

[sbrown80]

Is Blago tainted when he signs the payroll checks for the state employees?

So why is he tainted when he appoints probably the only politician without a criminal record.

I hate when pple use the race card but it's a little coincidental that they pick and choose when Blagovich is corrupt. Don't let him write employee checks if he's so corrupt.

[HyperInfluential]

Blago is tainted because he is caught, on tape, trying to sell this very senate seat. Now he has given it to someone, and we will never, ever know for sure if he got something for it in return. That's why nobody he appoints can be accepted, because a cloud of uncertainty will always hang over them. What is so hard to understand about that?

[JZ735]

That is an allegation...he has not been convicted...get it right...until he IS convicted, his appointments are completely legitimate.

[Gumby123]

Woo hoo! More Comedy Gold, keep it coming!

[hortonhearsawho2]

Did they magically come to this conclusion...

[Dukedraven]

Blago was aware that his stink bomb in the Senate would divert attention from him. I think the press needs to go back to camping around his house and putting the heat back on him. Stop letting Blago make fools of us all.

[Teyshar]

Blago was considering 3 candidates at least who were Black all of which Harry Reid found bad choices. Before the news of a senate sale, and within the investigation reports. You tell me...is this a stink bomb still?

[MaybeMilo]

Oh, horse sh_t.